


This Life We've Got (It's Good)

by Mapgirl



Category: Glee
Genre: Fluff, Kids, M/M, Minor Angst, Minor Character Death, Slice of Life, minor background characters - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-07-23
Updated: 2016-07-23
Packaged: 2018-07-26 06:30:30
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 10,295
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7563865
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mapgirl/pseuds/Mapgirl
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Two boys, working hard through the ups and downs, good times and bad. It's been a long road, but this life they've got - it's good.</p>
            </blockquote>





	This Life We've Got (It's Good)

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks to everyone who encouraged me throughout this bang. It's by far the longest thing I've ever written, and I can't believe I managed to do it! Thanks to Anna for proof-reading for me.

**\---Decisions over Breakfast---**

The last thing Puck expected when the doorbell rang at 7:30 in the morning was to see Finn standing on the stoop, hands shoved in his pockets and the weird hunch he got in his shoulders when he was nervous. His truck was parked behind him at the curb.

“Hey. Um, are you still taking off this morning?” Finn didn’t meet his eyes, but kept his gaze aimed down at the step.

Puck snorted at Finn. “Yeah dude, I’m just finishing breakfast then I’m hitting the road. You here to say goodbye?”

Finn shifted his weight a bit, and finally looked at Puck. Puck’s eyebrows rose when he noticed that Finn’s eyes were red, and he definitely looked as though he’d been crying at some point recently. “You that upset to see me go?”

 “Yeah. I mean no. I’m not upset to see _you_ go, I’m just sad cause, well. I changed my mind. I’m gonna go too. I want to go to LA with you Puck. And I just said goodbye to Mom and Kurt and Burt, and yeah. I’m pretty sad. To leave. But not like, to go. I’m stoked to go.”

Puck’s jaw dropped and he stared back at Finn. “What the fuck dude? When did this happen? Last week you wouldn’t even consider going with me. It was all about Rachel, and making her happy.”

Finn shrugged. “I dunno. I just kept thinking about what would I do in New York, and what was in New York to make ME happy, not just to make Rachel happy, and I couldn’t really come up with anything. And then I kept thinking about things that I might want to do, and that just made me confused and sad cause I can’t think of anything. So I talked to Kurt a lot, and he suggested I start by thinking about stuff that’s made me happy in the past. If I can figure out what’s made me happy before, maybe I can turn that into ideas for something I’ll want to do with my life. So then I realized that most of the stuff in my life that’s made me happy, has been stuff that you’re a part of. It all involves you. So I talked to Mom and Burt, and got the truck tuned up, and packed some shit, and now I’m ready to go. I don’t really care about LA, but I care about you so that’s where I’m going.” As he spoke, a flush started in his cheeks and ears, then worked it’s way down his neck. “I mean, if it’s okay still. If you still want me to tag along?”

Puck broke into a grin. “Frickin awesome dude! This is gonna be epic. Come on in and we can figure out how we’re going to do this.”

Finn followed Puck into the house and down the hall to the kitchen where Doreen and Amy were still at the table eating breakfast.

Puck swung a leg over his chair ignoring the unimpressed look from his ma, and picked up his fork to dig back into his breakfast. “Hey Ma, Finn’s changed his mind and decided to come with me after all, so no more worrying about me making the drive by myself, or having to find a place out there alone!”

“Well that’s sure a relief Noah. Finn - pour yourself some coffee and come sit down. Have you had your breakfast yet?”

“Hey Mrs. P., hey squirt. I haven’t eaten. I wanted to get over here early before Puck took off.”

“We’ve got more waffles in the freezer dude - grab some and let’s get planning. We’ve got two cars now to make the trip. Does it seem like a good idea to take both? Or should we leave one behind?”

Finn stuck his head into the freezer while Puck talked, searching for the waffles. He grabbed them and moved down the counter to the toaster. “Well, it would be more fun for sure if we drove together. It’s going to be awfully boring if we both drive and just have to follow each other. Unless we got a CB or walkie-talkies. That would be cool!”

“Yeah, but it’s going to cost twice the gas too. Do you have much saved up for this?”

“I’m pretty good. Mom’s got a small college fund for me I’m not allowed to touch unless it’s for school, but I’ve been banking all my money from the shop for a while now, in case I did go to New York with Rachel and Kurt. So I’ve got enough to drive out and keep me going for a couple months in case I don’t find a job right away. Mom and Burt sat down with me last night and helped me plan out a budget and we think it’s pretty reasonable if we’re careful about how much an apartment is.”

While Finn waited for his waffles to toast, he grabbed the coffee pot and filled a mug for himself, before turning to the table and re-filling Doreen’s and Puck’s. “Squirt - do you need another drink?” Amy just shook her head and stuck out her tongue at him before excusing herself and heading down the hall to finish getting ready for camp.

“Okay. I’ve got enough saved to get a pool business off the ground. It might take a few weeks to find some clients, but I figure I can find something in the evenings to pull in cash until I get a clientele built up. So we’re okay on funds for now. What about the cars?”

“Burt went over my truck pretty good yesterday. It’s only got 85,000 miles on it, and the tires, brakes, and radiator are all pretty new. Plus he surprised me and replaced the compressor for my air conditioning, so that’s working again too. He worried it might be pretty hot driving without it.”

Noah grimaced. “I’ve got about 130,000 miles, and I’m good for now, but it will probably need a bunch of work done once we make the drive out west. Your truck is in a lot better shape than mine.”

“Do we really need to have both of them? You can use mine for business once we get there, and we can always pick up a little car or something if our jobs make us need another car. Why don’t you leave yours here? We can see if Burt wants to buy it, or knows someone who would. That would give you some extra cash to start out with too.”

Puck rocked back on two chair legs as he thought it over. “I think that might be the best plan, if I can find someone to buy the truck. Do I have to sign the papers over in person? Cause that will suck if we have to wait around for another week or so while I find a buyer. How much do you think I can get for it?”

“Lemme call Burt and see if he knows about the papers, and what to start asking for the price.”

Finn dug into his pocket for his phone, and after checking the time dialed the tire shop. “Hey Dave, it’s Finn. Is Burt there yet? Thanks. Hey Burt. I’m at Puck’s making plans. Yeah. Uh huh. Yeah. We’re thinking of selling Puck’s truck and just taking mine. Does he have to be in town still to sign the papers? We don’t want to hang around until he finds a buyer. No? Good. You do? Who? I don’t know how much - Puck wants your opinion on that too. Okay. Just a second.”

Finn covered the mouthpiece with his hand and spoke to Puck. “Burt thinks he knows someone that might want to buy your truck. He’ll give him a call and see if he can come by the shop soon. You want to head over there and let Burt take a quick look at her, and then see if his buddy wants it?”

Puck nodded his assent, so Finn spoke back into the phone. “Hey Burt. Puck’s cool with heading over to the shop now. We’ll see you in a few, okay?” He disconnected the call and turned back to Puck. “Apparently Burt’s buddy John has been looking for an older small truck. He works nights and would have just gotten off shift, so Burt’s going to see if he can catch him before he heads to bed.”

Puck got up from the table and took his plate and mug to the sink. “Finish your waffles dude and let’s get going. It’ll be awesome if we can sell it this morning before we go.”

 --

Two hours later they pulled back up to Puck’s place, one truck lighter and $3500 richer. Doreen and Amy had already left for the day: Doreen to work and Amy to camp, so all they had to do was load Puck’s bags into the bed of the truck next to Finn’s, stop at the gas station to fill up on their way out of town, and hit the highway.

Puck got a kick out of the amount of stuff Finn had managed to pack in the short time he had the night before, but Finn explained that some of the boxes were things Carole had gotten out of the basement for them - dishes and kitchenware that had been extra when she and Burt combined houses and they had packed away for when the boys moved out for college. Other than that, he had packed up his drum kit, clothes, and laptop. Puck didn’t have nearly as much as Finn - just clothes, his guitar, and his pool cleaning gear. It was all good as there was lots of room in the truck bed, and Finn had a locking cover for it so there was no worries about their gear getting stolen.

 

 

**\---Where the Open Road Leads---**

After their late start Monday morning and a long 12 hours of driving, both Finn and Puck thought it was a good idea to relax a little the next morning and plan out their trip a little better. They figured that they wouldn’t get the chance to drive across the country that often, so might as well make the best of it and see some stuff along the way. They had spent the night at a Rodeway Inn off the interstate in Tulsa that was cheap and offered both free internet and breakfast, as well as a pool, so they figured it was good enough.

Tuesday morning they ate round one of their free breakfast (figuring they’d go back for refills before it closed down at 10) then put on their suits and went out to the pool. After a dip, they spread out on the lounge chairs with their phones out, and tried to plot their course for the next few days. They didn’t want to waste too much of their savings on the trip west, but wanted to see if they could plan a route that took them by some interesting stuff. Originally, Puck had just opened Google Maps and plotted the directions from Lima to LA, and chose the quickest route option - hence their night on I-44 in Tulsa.

After studying their options, they realized there weren’t too many choices. They could basically hit I-40 in Oklahoma City and stay on it straight to California, cut down to Dallas and take the 20 and 10 west, or mix it up a little. In the end, they decided to go south at Oklahoma City down into Texas, go through Dallas and Austin to San Antonio where they would head west again on I-10. Finn decided he wanted to see Truth or Consequences, so they’d head north again on I-25 at Las Cruces, and continue north until they got back to I-40. That way, when they crossed Arizona they could see Flagstaff and the South Rim of the Grand Canyon. From there, they’d go straight to LA. In all, it would add about another full day of driving to their trip, and maybe a couple of nights extra for hotels depending on how often they decided to stop and look at stuff throughout each day.

Once their route was all planned out, they jumped back in the pool again to cool off, went back to the room to pack up their stuff. Another stop in the breakfast room for another waffle each (homemade waffle makers were the best - this one had both plain and apple-cinnamon batter!), they filled their to-go cups with coffee and got back on the Interstate.

It was only about an hour and a half to Oklahoma City where they merged onto I-35 south. Puck was driving so Finn controlled the radio, and they spent the morning singing to the oldies on the station Finn had tuned in to.

After the nightmare that was Fort Worth traffic, the boys switched drivers and kept on the road to Austin. They planned to stop there for the night. Puck messed around on his phone for a bit, looking up stuff they could still do in Austin in the evening. “Dude! Oh my god this is awesome!”

Finn looked over from the road to see Puck almost bouncing in the seat. “What’s so cool?”

“Bats. Apparently Austin is known for their bats, and there’s this bridge you can go to see them in the evening. There’s like a million of them. Totally free too, except maybe to find parking.”

Finn scrunched up his nose. “I don’t know man, bats? Really? They’re sort of gross aren’t they?”

“Nah, It’ll be cool. Imagine thousands and thousands waking up and taking off all at once.”

“What about hair? Don’t they get caught in hair?”

“Myth. Don’t be a baby.”

“Hey, it’s a legitimate concern. The short guy bald guy doesn’t get a say when the really tall dude has lots of wavy hair for them to get tangled in!”

“Aww, come on man. Please? Afterwards we can go to this park where they have this awesome outdoor natural pool. It’s like the size of a football field or something and made from rock and natural springs.”

Finn put on his most stubborn face, and tried to use a little puppy eye too. “Alright, but you owe me. I get to stop at one really questionable roadside attraction without any arguing. No matter how dumb you think it is.”

Puck grinned and thrust out his hand for a fist bump. “Deal.”

The bats were everything Puck hoped they’d be - whatever that was, and even Finn had to admit they were pretty cool. It was a hot night, so both boys were stoked to find the Barton Springs pool was open until 10. They checked into a hotel first and grabbed some tacos from a little restaurant next door, before taking them to the park to sit and eat on the grassy banks surrounding the edges of the pool. After eating, they both made their way into the clear, cold water and floated around for a while. It was a gorgeous night, hot and clear with a few stars visible even through the glow of the city lights.

“Hey Puck?”

“Yeah?”

“I’m really glad I changed my mind and came with you.”

Puck floated over closer to Finn and reached out to bro-bump his shoulder. “Yeah, me too.”

He sank under the water and swam to Finn, grabbing him by the legs and tugging him under. When Finn came up a minute later spluttering, Puck was standing in the chest deep water laughing his ass off.

“Love you too, asshole.”

 

**\---Back Where it All Began---**

Puck knew he loved Finn Hudson pretty much from the first day they met. Back then he was still Noah, and Finn was Finny, and he hadn’t yet learned that boys don’t hold hands, crying makes you a pansy, and that a soft exterior gets you chosen last on the playground. He didn’t know that by third grade his dad would be in Akron with Julie from payroll, and his ma would have a new baby to take care of, and his papa would get the emphysema and die. He didn’t know back then that soon enough he’d be Puck, and it would take a good twelve years before he felt comfortable being Noah again around anyone but Finn.

What he did know that hot August day in ‘99, was that his mama loved him, and his dad worked a lot and came home tired, and that their house was on a street where he wasn’t supposed to play out front by himself ‘cause he might see bad stuff the bigger kids did. And he knew that in two weeks he was starting Kindergarten, and today was the day his mama was taking him to see the school, and they would practice riding the bus and stuff so it wouldn’t be scary when he had to do it himself.

There was another kid standing at the corner where his bus stop was going to be. He was bigger than Noah, and a little goofy looking with dark wavy hair all sticky-up in the back. He was clutching his mom’s hand, and looked a little bit like he might need to pee. The lady smiled at him and his mama, and asked if they were waiting for the bus too. Their moms started talking while he and the kid stared at each other. Finally, he decided the kid wasn’t going to say anything, so he walked ever to him and introduced himself like mama taught him. “Hey I’m Noah. What’s your name?”

“The kid looked down at the ground and blushed. “Finny” he whispered.

“Are you going to kindergarten too? Want to sit with me on the bus?”

The kid - Finny - looked up finally and smiled a bit. “Okay. Can we take turns having the window seat?”

“Sure! Hey look, the bus is coming. Let’s get ready!”

He grabbed Finny’s other hand and tugged him away from his mom. As they walked over to the curb to wait, he called back to his mom, “Hey Mama! Finny and me are gonna sit together and be friends, okay? You can sit with his mom so you’re not lonely on the ride.”

Finny looked over at him and grinned a big gap-toothed smile. “You wanna be my friend already?”

“Of course! Hey, how many teeth do you got gone? I haven’t lost any yet.”

“Four already! Plus this one is wiggly - see?” Finny opened up wide and poked at a tooth with a finger.

“That’s so cool. Hey, let’s go! The bus is here!”

He grabbed Finny’s hand again and tugged him up through the open door and onto the schoolbus. They sat in a seat, still holding hands, and grinned at each other all the way to the school.

 

**\---Starting a Life in LA---**

Their first day in LA was spent poring over maps, deciding where they might want to live, and seeing if they could actually afford to live in those neighbourhoods. They drove around a bit once they had some ideas, and quickly ruled out some areas as either too expensive, or too sketchy.

Once they found a neighbourhood they liked enough, that seemed to have a lot of businesses around for Finn to look for work, and was close enough to the residential areas with lots of pools for Puck, they started looking at apartment listings. Quickly, they came to the decision that rent on a 2-bedroom was a little more than they could afford.

“It’s a lot cheaper to go for a 1 bedroom man. Let’s do that for now. We can always move again into something bigger once we get decent jobs and some savings again.”

“But what about if we meet people. Like girls. Are we going to have a signal or something if you want to bring a girl back for the night?”

Puck looked a little uncomfortable for a minute, then took a breath. “So, about that. Finn, you should know, or you probably do already, that out here, away from Lima? It’s probably not going to be just girls anymore, okay? I, um. Well, I’m a little more equal opportunity than I ever let on in Lima, because you know - it was Lima. I couldn’t. But here, where it’s just you and me? I don’t want to hide it anymore. Okay? Is that going to be cool with you?”

Finn just stared for a minute. “What? Really? You what? Wow.”

Finn didn’t look mad, just confused, so Puck went on. “You didn’t know? Really? I thought you had figured it out. You caught me a couple of times with guys, but never said anything so I thought you were just being cool about it.”

“I did? When? Who?” Finn looked even more confused now.

“Um, that party out at Jason DeBakker’s? You walked into the bathroom on me and that dude from the soccer team? Our junk was out. What did you think?”

“Pissing contest! You said you were having a pissing contest!!”

“We were hard dude. You can piss when your dick’s hard?”

Finn blushed, “I didn’t look! I just thought you two were being drunk weirdo’s and backed out of the bathroom!”

“Huh. Okay. What about that time you came home and caught me and Kurt in the basement?”

“Kurt!!!! Oh my god you hooked up with Kurt!” Finn looked absolutely scandalized now.

“We didn’t really hook up, just kissed a bit. You really believed that I was helping him organize his DVD’s? “

“Yes! I’m trusting!”

“And naive apparently. So, it’s going to be okay with you if I occasionally bring a dude around instead of a chick?”

“Well sure. Whatever floats your boat. But I guess we’re going to have to re-think the bedroom set-up. I was going to suggest just getting a queen for now, then when we got a bigger apartment we would only have to buy one new bed. But I guess maybe we should go for twins?”

Puck looked at him a little inquisitively. “Why, you afraid you’ll catch the gay now?”

“What? No, I know that’s not true. You can’t catch gay, or bi-or-whatever you are either. If you’re cool with the queen, then I’m fine with it.”

Puck smirked, “I’m cool with all queens babe, I’m even a bit of a size queen myself. Big jock-types are my thing.”

Finn turned red and choked, “Not what I meant dude! And you know it. I meant a queen-sized mattress!”

“Yeah, I just wanted to make you blush. Okay, let’s go look at that complex over on Quintana, and see if we like it, then we can go pick up a mattress and then maybe scout the thrift stores for some furniture this afternoon.”

 

**\---Gotta Talk About Feelings---**

Four months in and things were going pretty great in LA. Puck was starting to build up a decent clientele, he was busy about 3 days a week at this point, and worked some evenings waiting tables in a restaurant a few blocks away from their apartment.

Finn had found a job pretty quickly at a car dealership, being a runner for the garage and doing oil changes and the like. Some days he also drove the courtesy van, but preferred to work inside than to deal with the traffic.

They really liked their apartment and neighbourhood. Finn had sent Carole some photos, and she laughed and told him it looked like this old show Melrose Place, but without the pool in the courtyard. There were a lot of shops and restaurants only a couple of blocks away, and they had found a little sports bar that had stopped asking for ID after they’d eaten there a half-dozen times and had gotten into a friendly rivalry with the bartender over baseball on the TV’s.

The only downside, such as it was, was the few times that Finn had woken up in the mornings with Puck plastered along his side, or the even more embarrassing times that he’d woken spooned up behind Puck, with his morning wood snugged up against Puck’s ass. He tried to ignore it, and not make a big deal. They were dude’s and shit happened.

One morning in October Finn woke to find himself curled around Puck like a teddy bear, with his dick hard and hot against Puck. In his early morning sleepiness, he was lazily thrusting up against Puck’s ass. As soon as he realized what he was doing he froze, waiting to see if Puck woke or not. Eventually he relaxed back into the bed, easing himself away from Puck and doing his best to will down his erection until he could get into the bathroom to jerk one out in the shower.

Just as Finn thought he was safe, and was rolling away to his side of the bed, Puck spoke, quietly in the dim morning light. “So, remember when we first got here, and we talked about the protocol for inviting hookups back to the apartment?”

Finn lay back against his pillow again, and made a small affirmative grunt, his dick still making things uncomfortable.

“I noticed that you’ve never asked me to stay out, or to sleep on the couch.” Puck stayed rolled on his side, with his back to Finn. “You’ve never gone home with anyone either. Neither have I.”

“Nah, I just haven’t felt it, I guess. I’ve been happy here, just us hanging out.”

“Yeah, it’s been good.”

They both lay there quietly for a few minutes, before Puck spoke again, a question in his voice.

“The morning we left Lima. You said something. About how being with me was what made you happy. What did you mean by that, exactly.”

Finn sighed. “I don’t know, really. When I said it, I just meant that looking back on my life, most of the times I’ve been really happy were times I was with you. That’s still true. I’m happier here with you than I’ve ever been.”

“Me too dude. This move was the best decision we’ve ever made.”

“So, one more question.” Puck sounded nervous, and he sucked in a deep breath before he continued. “The spooning. In the mornings. Is that something that’s making you happy too? Or is it making you uncomfortable. Because, for me. I could handle a little more of it. I’d like a lot more of it, if it doesn’t make things weird for you.”

Finn was quiet for a few minutes as he thought.

“I never really thought about it before, you know. Not about being with you that way, or about being with any guy that way. But these mornings, they’ve been pretty good. And felt pretty great. And I’m not going to lie about this. When I get in the shower, lately what I’ve been jerking to has been the thought of being pressed up against you. So yeah, I think I’d be okay with trying some more stuff with you.”

Puck rolled over in bed so he was facing Finn, and a shy smile crept across his face. “Really dude? You want to try it? Cause that’s awesome.”

Finn rolled in to face Puck too. “Come’ere man, let’s see what happens.” He leaned into Puck and went for the kiss. After a fairly slow start, then a few minutes of heavier making out, Finn pulled back.

“So I guess it’s true then.”

“What?”

“Two dudes in a bed together. Confirmed gay.”

 

 

**\---Stupid Choices---**

Finn was just finishing up some invoices before he packed it in for the week when his desk phone rang. He glanced at the Caller ID, hoping it wasn’t a customer that would tie him up this late on a Friday. He started a bit when he saw the 419 Lima area code, but didn’t recognize the number itself.

“Finn Hudson”

“Hello Finn, it’s Doreen.”

“Mrs. P? What’s up?”

“Finn, I got a call today from Lydia. Oh, that’s Noah’s father’s wife? I didn’t want to call Noah and tell him while he’s alone at work, but his dad died this morning.”

“Whoa. Shit.” Finn was stunned. Puck was rarely in touch with his dad, and hadn’t seen him since before graduation two years earlier. He got the occasional email, or an update from Amy, but Finn hadn’t even realized that he was married again. “What happened to him? I mean, how did he go. Die? How did he die?”

“Apparently they think it was a heart attack. Lydia works the night shift, and found him in their kitchen when she got home this morning. There will have to be an autopsy, but she said his doctor had warned him about artery blockage, so that’s what they’re thinking for now.”

“Oh, okay. I’m heading home soon, and Puck should be there by the time I do. I’ll talk to him, then maybe have him call you? Or Amy? How’s she?”

“I think she’s a little stunned still. She’s in her room right now, trying to pretend she’s fine and everything’s okay, but I can tell she’s upset. It would be good for Noah to call her.”

“Okay then. I’ll get going, and we’ll talk soon. Thanks for calling me.”

Fuck. Finn really, really didn’t want to go home and tell Noah this. He and his dad were pretty complicated. Finn knew that Puck was still pretty angry with him for walking out on them when he and Amy were so little, and that he secretly sort of hoped they might be closer someday. Fuck.

After fighting the Friday afternoon traffic through Burbank, Finn pulled into his assigned spot at the apartment 45 minutes later. Puck was home already - the truck was in the spot next to him. When Finn got across the complex to their apartment, Puck had the door propped open and was sitting out on their little verandah area in a lawn chair with a half empty beer cradled in his hands.

“Hey Babe, traffic must have been bad, you’re a little late. I picked up some meat to make burgers for supper, and some of that potato salad you like from the WalMart.”

Finn took a deep breath, and walked over next to Puck. “Hey, let’s go inside for a bit, okay? I need to talk to you.”

Puck laughed. “Dude, you look like someone died. What’s the big serious deal?” He took another look at Finn, then said, “Oh shit. Did someone really die? Babe?” He put his beer down on the cement and stood up.

Finn grasped his hands and tugged him inside, closing the door behind them. He pulled Puck into a hug, and whispered into his ear, “It’s your Dad, Puck. He died this morning. Your mom called me at the shop before I left.”

Finn felt Puck’s hands clench into fists as they gripped his shirt. “How?”

“They think it was a heart attack. Lydia found him when she got home this morning.”

Puck lifted his head from Finn’s chest and looked up at him. “Who?”

Finn’s eyes widened. Oh no. “Lydia? Your mom said she called her and Amy to tell them. I guess she’s your dad’s wife?”

“Dad was married again? Hmfh. Really. Guess the invite got lost in the mail.”

Puck pulled out of Finn’s arms and stalked over to the kitchen and got another beer from the fridge. “So, you ready for those burgers yet? I’ll go out and light the barbecue.” He tilted his head and drained most of the beer, then reached for a second from the fridge before stomping outside.

During dinner, Finn tried a couple of times to bring up Michael, but Puck changed the conversation and finally Finn dropped it for now. When he mentioned that maybe Puck should call his ma or Amy to find out more details, Puck just excused himself from the table and went to the bedroom, shutting the door behind him.

Finn cleared up the supper dishes and put the leftovers away in the fridge, then went down the hall to their bedroom. “Hey Puck, can I come in?”

Puck just grunted, so Finn carefully opened the door and saw Puck sitting back on the bed, propped up against the headboard. “You want some company babe? Or I can go back to the living room and give you some space?”

Puck kept his gaze down but muttered that he’d be out in a little while, if Finn could close the door again please.

Finn shut it quietly and walked back to the living room, grabbing the remote and flopping on to the couch. He flipped around a bit, not really paying any attention and finally stopped on an old repeat of Diners, Drive-ins and Dives. He was more concerned about Puck than he was interested in the TV, but tried to occupy himself with the show, and respect Puck’s wishes for a little alone time.

Eventually, halfway through the next episode, Puck came out of the bedroom and walked into the kitchen. Finn heard the fridge and some cupboards open and close, and then Puck came into the living room with a beer for Finn, and a large tumbler for himself - from the smell of it a pretty strong Rye and Coke. He sat down next to Finn, leaning a little into his side, and silently handed over the beer. “I don’t want to talk about it tonight, okay. Just watch the TV.”

Finn lifted his arm and wrapped it around Puck’s shoulders, and turned the volume up a notch. “You got it babe. Whatever you need.”

A couple of hours later Finn was sick of the Food Network marathon they’d stayed on, and Puck was well past the point of drunk, having had a couple of refills on his drink over the evening. He’d been pretty quiet all night, making the occasional sarcastic comment towards the TV but otherwise ignoring Finn and his surroundings. He’d stayed pressed up against Finn for the most part - only moving to refill his drink and to take a piss. By this point of the night, he was getting a little belligerent, listing pretty heavily into Finn’s side, and getting more obnoxious in the comments he was hurling at Guy Fieri.

Finn carefully stood, and pulled Puck to his feet beside him. “Hey babe, I think it’s time you went to bed, okay? Let’s go.”

He tried to get Puck to walk down the hall towards the bedroom, but Puck resisted, flopping back onto the couch in defiance. “No way asshole, I want another drink. Go get me one.”

“Puck. You’re drunk. I don’t think that’s a good idea and you’ve already had a lot. Let’s just go to bed.”  Finn grabbed his shirt by the collar and pulled it over his head, hoping it would lure Puck down the hallway with him.

“What. You think you can fuck me into doing what you want? That I’m enough of a slut that I’ll listen to you just to get my dick wet?”

“What? Puck, no. Come on, I just want you to come to bed now, okay?”

“I know you think I’m still just a Lima loser. You’re probably surprised that I’ve managed to stay with you this long. I betcha you thought I’d be more like my old man didn’t you, willing to whore it up with anyone willing to spread it for me. You with your nice new job at your fancy desk. You’re still working in an auto shop, blue collar like the rest of us. Same as my dad was. You’re not any better than he was, and no better than I am. Just because you work in the office now instead of in the pit wearing overalls doesn’t mean you’re any better than the rest of us losers.”

Finn stood there stunned. “Puck, what the fuck? You’re talking crazy. I love you, and I don’t think you’re a loser at all. I’m so proud of the way you’ve grown your business. You’ve done awesome since we moved here.”

Puck glared at him and stormed over to the door. “Oh fuck off Finn. Fuck you and fuck your blemishes. I’m outta here.” The door slammed behind him as Puck took off.

Finn just stood there for a minute, “Fuck your blemishes? What the fuck does that mean? Puck? Fuck.” He ran over to the door and outside calling after Puck. “Puck, Puck, get back here. Damnit Puck. Fuck.”

Puck wasn’t on the sidewalk anywhere, and Finn couldn’t see him going up the street. Damnit. He went back into the apartment to grab his cellphone and keys, then noticed Puck’s phone lying on the breakfast bar. “Son of a bitch.  I better see him out there.”

Finn stormed out to his car, and started cruising the streets around their apartment looking for Puck. He wouldn’t have had time to get too far, but he wasn’t in sight. Finn stopped by a couple of local bars they went to sometimes, but no one there had seen Puck, so he left word to call him if he showed up, then continued his search. Every now and then he either called Puck’s cell, hoping he was home again and would pick it up, or he drove back to the apartment and went in to check for him. Finally, around 3am he gave up for the night. He spent the night sitting up on the couch, worried sick about Puck. He really shouldn’t have let him drink that much, but he had no idea Puck would go off like that. It was crazy. Finn hadn’t seen Puck act like that since the whole thing with Beth back in high school.

Saturday morning, Finn tried to eat and tidy up around the house, sure that Puck would come home at any minute. As the hours passed, he got more and more scared, until around noon he phoned the police to see what could be done. Since Puck was an adult, he couldn’t be reported missing for a while longer, but they were nice and suggested some things Finn could do - call the hospitals and shelters and see if someone with Puck’s description had turned up in the night. Other than that they said they’d have their beat cops keep an eye out, but he couldn’t officially file a report until Sunday night.

Finn spent a couple of hours on the phone calling the hospitals, which he never wanted to do again. It made a raw-feeling hole in his gut every time they put him on hold to see if their John Doe’s in the ER or morgue matched Puck’s description. After one hospital made him wait, as they had a possible match and were there any distinguishing scars on Mr. Puckerman?, Finn barely made it to the bathroom before he puked up the sandwich he’d forced down for lunch.

Mid afternoon Puck’s phone started going off again and Finn couldn’t ignore it any more. It was Doreen, calling to check in since Puck hadn’t called back the night before. Finn felt like ten piles of shit - both for having to tell Doreen that Puck was missing, and for being relieved that the burden wasn’t his alone anymore.

Saturday evening was more driving through the neighborhoods, looking for any sign of Puck and stopping at all of the stores and restaurants they normally frequented. One waitress they had fairly often at the Italian place said she was pretty sure she’d seen Puck the night before, but couldn’t offer any more help than that. A bouncer in a little dive bar they’d only been to once or twice recognized him off the photo Finn showed him, and said he’d been in just before last call the night before, totally shit-faced. He’d thought Puck was there with a girl.

 ---

Around 10am Sunday morning, Finn woke from an exhausted nap to hear the front door opening. Puck stumbled through, bleary eyed and filthy. He stopped short at the sight of Finn sitting up on the couch waiting, then slowly closed the door behind himself.

Puck looked at Finn. He looked like shit, his eyes were red and puffy and he probably hadn’t slept much. He had a sad, solemn look on his face, his eyes a little emptier than Puck had ever seen them.

“Finn, babe. I’m so sorry. I acted like an asshole Friday night.”

Finn cut him off before he could say any more.

“No. Puck. Noah. You don’t get to do that. You don’t get to act like that and treat me like that. I’ve been here all fucking weekend worried about you, not knowing where to go or how to find you and it was really, really shitty, and I was really, really scared.”

Puck tried to break in, but Finn cut him off. “No. Shut up. Shut the fuck up. You don’t get to talk to me right now. I’ve been thinking about this all night, and it’s my turn to talk, and you need to listen and you need to think.”

“I’ve loved you for fifteen years now, and been in love with you for probably five. You’ve been _it_ for me for the past two, since that morning we drove out of Lima. You’re the most important person in the world to me, but I’m pretty fucking important too, and I’m not going to let anybody, not even you, fuck me around and treat me like shit. You said some really mean things to me, and about me, and it hurt. I know you had a rough blow. Your dad died and it’s shitty and you panicked and you ran away. I don’t know what you did, or who you were with, and I’m not sure I want to know.

But I know this. It was the only time you will _ever_ do that to me. You will never yell things like that at me again, and you will never take off drunk like that again, and you will always, _always_ let me know you are safe. If it’s in your power, you will never make me go through a weekend like that again. I deserve that much respect from you, and you deserve the same respect from me.

So please. Go shower or whatever, and think about this. If we’re in this forever, for the long haul, then we’ve got to be able to count on each other, and trust each other to help when shitty stuff happens. You can’t walk out on me again, and leave me like that not knowing where you are or what’s happened to you. You know your Mom called back, and I had to tell her you were gone. And Amy. She wanted to talk to her big brother because she was sad and upset too, and I had to tell her that I couldn’t put you on the phone, because I had no fucking clue where you were. Think about that, and think about what you want, and then come talk to me.”

Puck looked at Finn’s somber tear-stained face, and slowly turned and walked to the bathroom.

 

**\--- The Big-City Life is not for Me---**

“Hey babe, it’s me. I’m stuck in Pasadena. Again. Fuck this traffic. I’m probably gonna be too late to make it to the movie, it’ll be 8 before I get home. Both the 210 and the 134 are parking lots. Dammit. Talk to you soon. Love you.”

_“Hey Puck, I just heard on the news that the 5 is a nightmare, if you’re heading to Alhambra to pick up those supplies you might want to reschedule or reroute. Good luck. Talk to you soon!”_

_“Puck. I’m still at the dealership. I was going to swing by and get groceries on the way home, but with traffic it’ll be at least another hour. See you then! Kisses!”_

“I hate this fucking town sometimes.”

“We only live 20 miles from the damn ocean, how can it possibly take over 2 hours to get there?”

_“Hey Puck. Remember when I said that the dealership was opening another location up in Santa Barbara? They offered me the job. What do you think? I’ll pick up beer. Let’s talk when I get home tonight.”_

“Finny. I got a lead on an apartment out in Goleta. It’s only 10 minutes from the dealership, and near that shopping plaza with the Costco in it. Rent’s $1300. Laundry on site, 2 parking spots, and a pool in the complex. Call me. Agent wants to know by noon.”

_“Hey Mom, I wanted to call and let you know our new address. I got a new job, and we’re moving up to Santa Barbara next month. Call me back when you get this.”_

“Oh my God Finn. I got 2 new clients today, cleaned 3 pools, and only spent 20 minutes on the freeway all told. This place rocks. Wanna hike up Rattlesnake Canyon after work and then do dinner at Hollister? Sound good? Love you babe.”

  


**\---Interlude---**

Finn eased the door open and quietly took off his coat and boots in the foyer. The apartment was dim in the late afternoon light. He set down his bags in the kitchen then walked to the bedroom and poked his head inside, seeing a lump of Puck under the covers, with an overflowing wastebasket next to the bed.

He sat down on the side of the bed, and ran his hand over Puck’s warm forehead. “Hey Babe, how are you feeling?”

Puck slowly blinked open his bleary eyes and looked around for a minute. “Wha time izzit?”

“Near five.”

“Ugh, I’ve been sleeping for hours. I think I feel a bit better though”.

“Good. I stopped at Albertson’s and got you some soup and more Nyquil, and some new cough drops, okay? If you’re ready to eat something, I’ll go get the soup ready.”

Finn was in the kitchen, standing at the stove idly stirring the soup when he heard Puck shuffle up the hallway. He smiled as he felt arms wrap around his waist and Puck’s face nuzzle into the soft wool of his sweater.

“Thanks for taking care of me Babe,” Puck rasped into his back.

Finn reached down to the hand at his waist and twined their fingers together, “Of course dorkus. What else would I do?”

 

**\---Storks Don’t Always Bring the Babies---**

About three years after the move up to Santa Barbara, Puck got a text one day from Mike Chang, who he hadn’t heard from in a while. Mike wanted to make sure it was okay to pass Finn and Puck’s information along to Tina, who had recently moved out to LA and didn’t really know anybody there yet. Not too long afterwards, they made the trip down to LA one weekend to see her, and had a great time. Tina was working for a non-profit environmental law firm, and was busy with her new job, but still really glad to have some old friends around to spend some downtime with.

That weekend soon turned into fairly regular trips to see each other, either they drove down to the city to see her, or more frequently she made the drive up to Santa Barbara to hang out with the boys. Tina hadn’t changed a whole lot since high school. Mellowed out some on the drama, but was still intensely passionate about the causes she believed in. Funny enough, she wasn’t at all surprised that Finn and Puck were a couple. Said that she could see how much they loved each other back in high school, and if the whole Beth situation couldn’t tear them apart then not much could, and it was just a matter of whether their sexualities would ever let them make the leap from best friends to lovers.

A year or so after they got back in touch, Tina was up seeing them one weekend when she brought up the subject of kids. Kurt and his new husband Allan had been trying to work with an agency that specialized in matching surrogates to gay men, and having a rough time of it. They both found it hard to commit that much trust to a woman they didn’t really know, and were currently on hold and re-evaluating their options. Finn and Puck had discussed having kids, and both wanted to do it but were unsure about how to get started. Kurt’s troubles with surrogacy concerned them, and from what they’d heard the wait times for adoption of newborns was pretty long. Both were willing to adopt toddlers or young kids, so that’s where they thought they’d end up in a couple of years.

Tina had another idea for them though, that they hadn’t really considered before. A young woman in her office was pregnant, and was looking for a good couple to meet for a private, somewhat open adoption. Anna didn’t want to be a parental figure in any way, but couldn’t stand the thought of giving up her child and never seeing them again. Tina had mentioned to her that she had friends that might be a good match, and Anna was interested in meeting them.

They discussed it after Tina left for home that Sunday afternoon, and by Wednesday they had made plans to go to LA that weekend, and meet Tina and Anna for dinner.

Overall, it went pretty good - considering this woman was essentially auditioning them to raise her child. Both Finn and Puck were nervous and worried about making a good impression, but with Tina to buffer the way the initial jitters after introductions quickly smoothed out and everyone became more relaxed. Anna was a lot more outgoing than they had initially thought she would be, and before long they realized that their personalities meshed pretty well, and that she had a wicked sense of humour.

A few more meetings and phone calls, and it was decided by both groups that they would be a good fit. Anna was happy with them as parents for her baby, and Finn and Puck both thought she would be an awesome friend to have, and a great aunty for the kid. The 2 hour distance between their homes was pretty decent. Close enough for Anna to make the occasional day trip up to visit, or for them to take the baby down to LA, but far enough that they could have separate lives and there wouldn’t be any confusion or risk from spending too much time together. They both obtained a family law lawyer and had the adoption paperwork drawn up, and all that was left was to wait for February and for Anna to give birth to their daughter.

  
  
**\---Vacation with a toddler?---**

When the sun goes down on their first afternoon of driving, they’ve only made it as far as San Clemente - a whopping 160 miles from Santa Barbara. They only have another 150 miles to drive in the morning, but at the pace they made today they won’t make it to Ensenada until midnight tomorrow. Both Finn and Puck had severely misjudged how Emily would handle an afternoon in the car, and neither of them looked forward to strapping her back in her carseat in the morning. They had originally planned on driving to San Diego tonight, then an early start at the Zoo in the morning before crossing into Mexico mid-afternoon.

They had left the house as soon as lunch was over, with the plan that Emily would fall asleep and take her nap for the first couple of hours on the road. Unfortunately, they didn’t count on the excitement of “Da beach Papa! And da ZOO! Ridin’ inna car wif Papa and Daddy and Emmy ‘n’ goin’ at da BIG ZOO!” Apparently it was too much for a two (ana haf Daddy! Emmy two ana haf!) year old, and she didn’t fall asleep until well after Camarillo, and two potty stops.

“Gotta pee Papa! Gotta pee now Papa! PEE PEE PEE NOW!”

“It’s okay Em, you’re wearing a diaper. We’re driving on the freeway, and it’s sort of hard to stop right here.”

“No Papa! I pee in potty now!”

Finn twisted in the passenger seat to talk to Emily. “You’re doing such a great job with the potty baby, but right now, this time in the car, it’s okay to use the diaper. See, Papa’s driving on the busy road, and there’s not really a good place to stop the car and find you a potty.”

“Nuh-huh Daddy. Imma pee in a potty. Imma pee in a potty and make da swoosh and go ByeBye Pee! Bye Pee inna potty! Wash my hands! All clean up. Inna potty I gotta pee.”

“You’ll either have to wait a bit, or go in the diaper Em. Papa will look for a place to go potty, but it might be a while.”

At this point, both men sort of regretted their efforts in the last couple of months to convince Emmy how much fun the potty was.

 --

They stopped and ate dinner at a little pizza place just off the highway, then chose to book a room at the Holiday Inn across the road. Partly because of the pool and free hot breakfast, but mostly because Puck could walk Emily over to the hotel while Finn drove the car, and they wouldn’t have to listen to Emily cry about her car seat again that day.

It took a while to get Emily settled down in the hotel room, she was way too wound up to sleep in an exciting new place and expecting a fun day at the zoo in the morning. It was well after 10 before she conked out on the bed, draped across Finn’s outstretched legs. They wrangled her into the bed between them, and both collapsed for the night, knowing she’d be up at her usual 6am.

Sure enough, Puck woke to little fingers poking his cheek just as the sun was peeking through the curtains. “Hey Papa! Morning Papa! Emmy needs breakfast. Hear my tummy go Grrrrrr?”

Finn groaned from across the bed and lifted his head. “Hey baby, how was your sleep last night?”

“Hey Daddy! I sleeped good. I sleeped with you and Papa in a big bed!”

“Yeah you did baby, and you only kicked about 100 times last night. I think it’s an improvement Puck from the last time we were in a hotel.”

Puck rolled out of the bed, and stretched before tugging on his jeans and shirt from the day before. “Okay my dudes. Let’s get this party started! Who wants a waffle for breakfast?”

“Me! Me! Emmy wants a waffle and a Cheerios. Let’s go Daddy! Up, up! Me and Papa are gonna hab a waffles!”

“Hey Miss Emmy, how about we let Daddy sleep for a few more minutes and we go find the breakfast in our jammies?” Puck picked her up off the bed and threw her over his shoulder squealing.

“I owe you one Babe” Finn muttered before face-planting into the pillows as Puck found their room key and headed out the door.

“Uh huh, and I’m expecting to be paid tonight in our hot tub at the hotel in Ensenada. After little missy here is in bed.”

Finn reached up and made a somewhat crude jerk-off motion with his hand before letting his arm flop back down. “You got it Babe. We’ll break the place in good, with a kid in the next room and a Corona each. Whoo-hoo. Party hard. Now go and eat your waffles.”

 --

The morning in the zoo was good. Emily was enraptured with the animals, and they decided that once she was a little older and more able to walk the distance, they’d have to bring her back. Puck wanted to see SeaWorld too - although Finn was violently opposed to them and would only consider a visit there if they majorly changed their Orca program.

They got on the road again mid-afternoon, and today’s drive worked out a lot easier than the day before. Emily was exhausted from the zoo and her late night the day before, and only cried in her car seat for about 30 minutes before falling asleep and napping for a good 2 hours. Crossing the border went fine, and the drive down Baja was pretty spectacular. Emmy woke up just before they got to Ensenada, and Puck managed to entertain her with songs while Finn got them to the beach front hotel they were staying at for the week.

The place looked great. Tina had recommended it to them after staying there the year before. They had a little cottage with 2 bedrooms, a small kitchenette, and a hot tub out on the verandah. As soon as they got their luggage inside, they all changed into swimsuits and Puck lathered the sunscreen on Finn and Emmy before they hit the beach. Emmy loved it. The sand was a little better than their favorite beach in Santa Barbara, and the water was much warmer.

After playing for an hour, they cleaned up and went over to the hotel restaurant for supper, eating out on the patio in the cool evening air. A nice long walk on the beach after supper was plenty to tire Emmy out for the night, and before too long they had her tucked in bed asleep and were in their hot tub with a beer each.

“Soooo, I can’t help but notice that this part of the patio is awfully secluded. Especially here in the dusk without anyone out on the beach.” Puck was playfully teasing his fingers over Finn’s shoulders and neck, tickling him a bit where Puck knew damn well it got him a little turned on.

“I don’t think we really need these anymore tonight, do we?” Finn wiggled a little, and pulled his trunks up out of the water, flinging them over the side of the hot tub onto the patio.

“Not for anything I’ve got in mind.” Puck’s trunks soon lay next to Finn’s on the ground, and Puck set his beer in a cup holder, crawling over into Finn’s lap.

They kissed lazily for a while, before Puck slid more firmly down onto Finn and started to grind into Finn’s dick. Both of them were hard, and the friction with the water in the hot tub was just on the right side of too much. Finn reached down between them and got a good grip around both their dicks, letting Puck thrust a bit into his hold while he held on tight.

“Jesus baby, you feel good.” Finn grunted a bit while Puck slid his cock against him, moving his other hand around Puck to get a good grip on an ass cheek.

Puck was panting pretty hard when he broke their kiss to come up for air. “Wait a minute babe. How often do you think they clean these hot tubs out? I don’t want to jizz in here and then have to splash around in it for the next week.”

“Oh gross Puck. Way to ruin the mood.” Finn plunked his head back against the headrest on the side of the tub, and let go of Puck’s dick and ass.

“Well seriously though. Do you want to put Emmy into spunky water tomorrow? Let’s get out and go inside.”

Puck got off Finn and climbed out of the hot tub, reaching for a towel to give a quick rub dry. Finn looked on appreciatively at Puck’s body in the moonlight, all tanned and toned with his dick jutting straight out.

“Fuck Puck. Look at your cock. I really need to blow you, okay? Let’s get inside.” Finn clambered out after Puck, not quite as gracefully but with a lot of enthusiasm. He didn’t even bother with a cursory rubdown as Puck had, just grabbed his arm and pulled him through the patio doors into the cottage, then through to their bedroom. He turned after they closed the door, and pushed Puck up against it, before sinking to his knees on the hardwood.

Puck’s head tipped back against the door as Finn took his dick in hand, and lowered his mouth over it. Finn couldn’t go very deep, but man was he ever good with the suction and his tongue. He used his hand on the length of Puck’s cock he couldn’t swallow around, and it was fantastic. Puck held on for a while, but when he looked down and saw Finn jacking his own cock with his other hand, that was all it took and Puck convulsed into Finn’s mouth. Finn took his time sucking him clean and swallowing, then leaned back and gave a few last tugs on himself before spraying come up and across his chest.

“Ugh, I’m a mess. You go climb into bed, and I’m going to clean up a bit in the bathroom.”

Finn went over and closed the bathroom door behind himself, and Puck pulled back the sheets and flung himself across the bed. Puck heard the water running, and then the shower start. Huh. Finn was going to be a bit longer than he thought. Puck made himself comfortable and lay in bed thinking about what they would do on their vacation.

When Finn finally shut off the shower and opened the bathroom door to come back into the bedroom, Puck was lying in bed half asleep with a pretty goofy just-got-laid look on his face. Finn smiled, and crawled in next to his love.


End file.
